exit, stage e a s t

Good day, good day. My friends, the friends of my friend, my travellers. We have journeyed together days and a nights, days! And nights.

And though many would say, Mazyar, how do you steal! Steal, like babes from the mother's teat, how do you take a convoy, dozens of men and women, beautiful, beautiful women, and the men are strapping, and the goats are good! They give us milk. And the horses are pleasing. And how do you thieve all this great offering, Mazyar, and you carry it on your feeble back, all through the customs, past the officers, past the paper-men, past the checks, past the dead! How do you do all this, Mazyar, how great is your wisdom, you, who are industrious like a god and cunning like a fox? Mazyar! Mazyar! You are a hero of stories, a thief of a thousand and one nights!

( He finally... remembers to breathe. ) But do not applaud me! Friends. Friends. I only do my duty. With greatness and ability and skill, but I only do my humble, humble duty. I take you to Taravast. But you must help me, yes? In this small thing, small, small thing, you will not notice. Just... a few guidelines, as we cross the Stairs of Sighs. For all our safety, yes? Small... small things. I ask so little! You will not notice.

A few rules — no, we are friends. A few... encouragements.

The first: you may have noticed, the... company. Of Lord Arha, who joins us in his... chivalry to escort us. Very kind! Very wonderful. Very... but you know already. Do not speak it, or else your tongue ties and your words fail a day and a night. And you upset him. There is talk... it is good, never make Lord Arha upset. Why? He is a prince, why upset princes. Royal blood, ah? Their tempers.

The second: do not make noise or sudden movement, if you can help it. There are snakes, and snakes here are vicious. And there are other creatures from the sky, and I know! I know. 'Mazyar, you! You cannot be afraid!' And I am not... but we have fowl, we have animals, and they steal. Disgusting things, they are. Careful with their claws and their beaks and their dark flesh-blood. It pools, and sometimes it burns the touch. In fact... if you are without work, and you want some coin... and I have it! I am a generous man.

Collect the tar from infected pools we pass by, in our great water barrels. We take it with us, and the schools of Taravast pay well after. The same for snakes, for exotics. The venom sells well. And if you capture a harpy... o-hoooo. My friends, gold as you cannot imagine. Not to mention, the many treasures they say lie buried in lost temple grounds.

The third ru — encouragement: mind the road down the old canyon. It is stone, yes? Only stone. But stone crumbles, the cliff-side erodes, you slip. And the walls... do not travel by them alone. Dozens of men disappeared inside the walls, never to be seen, and they say! They say. It is only a pathway to the realm of Death herself!

The fourth: our other companions. Some are from Sa-Hareth. Some... you do not ask. We are private people. I have a reputation, 'Mazyar the Humble,' 'Mazyar the Discreet.' We are not inconvenient. Some of them who left Sa-Hareth, besides... did it because Anurr was — an unfortunate development. And who helped depose their little friend, Unhalad? Aaaaaaahhhhhhh. Shhh, better we do not talk about politics, see?

The fifth: ...whoever shared the feeding before? The one that turned stomachs? You do not cook again. I! I, of course, being a man of great strength suffered nothing. But others... there were complaints. Even Lord Arha... as I said. Noble temperaments.

The sixth: the Lady Hatisse. I speak her name once, and that will be all. I do not want talk of witches in my caravan. No politics, no witches.

It is good to have you, all of you. And we will make such memories together. Please, do not thank me. I am humbled to have saved you.